The monument to the Greek drachma in Athens. Hopes of a return to former stability may have risen with Horst Reichenbach's comments. Photograph: Simela Pantzartzi/EPA

After a giddy week of wildly gyrating markets sparked mostly by fears of an imminent Greek default, a European Union taskforce dispatched to Athens said it was confident that Greece would emerge from the crisis "with a good future in Europe".

In a departure from the downbeat language increasingly used to describe the debt-stricken country, the German banker leading the mission said that while Greece faced "unique" reforms, he was also "impressed" by the government's determination to enact changes that were long overdue.

"I have met a number of ministers and in all my contacts, I have seen enormous political will," said Horst Reichenbach as he concluded a three-day visit to Athens by the new EU team. "I am very glad that at a European level there is the political will to keep Greece in the euro and have a good future for Greece in Europe."

Reichenbach, a former vice-president at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, which has worked extensively in the former eastern bloc, said the taskforce, set up after Athens appealed for a second €109bn bailout (£95bn) in July, would prioritise resolving the country's "liquidity crisis". The 30-member team, based in Athens and Brussels, will focus on accelerating absorption of EU funds into infrastructure works that generate growth.

"We are not here to control Greece," said Reichenbach, whose team will work closely with inspectors from the EU, European Central Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF), the "troika" that has monitored fiscal progress since May 2010 when Greece was bailed out with €110bn. "We are here to provide technical assistance … there are major infrastructure works that could have a huge employment impact," he said, arguing that the notoriously uncompetitive economy could be energised by expanding tourism, alternative energy and food processing.

"Money is not the big problem, money is available … the problem is to put it to good and effective use," he said referring to under-utilitised EU funds. "A good investor always looks for an opportunity and this [Greece] is a brilliant opportunity."

The upbeat assessment came as the finance minister, Evangelos Venizelos, admitted that Greece would remain mired in recession for a fourth straight year in 2012 despite earlier estimates that it would have turned the corner.

Aggravated by EU and IMF-dictated austerity, the downturn has led the socialist government to miss goals, with an initial budget deficit target of 7.6% now likely to be above 9% by the year's end. With productivity levels also plunging, unemployment stands at a record 16%.

Backsliding on reforms – due to stiff resistance from unions and other vested interests – led Germany and France to warn that future aid might not be forthcoming if Greece did not initiate change. The pressure appears to have worked with Athens working at breakneck speed to apply deeply unpopular measures, including a draconian new property tax to plug a €2bn budget shortfall.

"The ball is now in the Greek court," said Olli Rehn, the EU's economics and monetary affairs commissioner to whom the new EU taskforce will report.